Clear as mud
DEVOLUTION is supposed to be about Westminster handing real decision-making power over to new bodies such as a Scottish parliament. This, says Labour's manifesto, “will bring power closer to the people of Scotland.” Opinion polls show that this is popular. And yet, whenever Tony Blair goes to Scotland to explain how he is going to do this, he gets tied up in terrible knots, leaving the pro-devolution Scottish media shouting protests and many Scots, including many in the Scottish Labour Party, wondering if Labour's national leadership really means to devolve much power to Edinburgh. They have reason to wonder, and worry. Labour's plans, despite years of preparation, still have gaping holes. And the signals coming from Mr Blair are ominous.
This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “Clear as mud”
From the April 12th 1997 edition
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